Aunt Aida's Kaak bi Haleeb (Soft Milky Buns) / mahlab
Kaak bi haleeb are traditional Lebanese soft milky bun rings, flavored with mahlab (махлеб). Family recipe from Aunt Aida.
⏱️ Prep: 20 min🍳 Cook: 15 min🍽️ Makes 20
Ingredients
| 250 g | plain flour | |
| 125 ml | milk | |
| 75 g | butter | |
| 150 g | sugar | |
| 1 tsp | 5 ml | fresh yeast |
| 1 tsp | 5 ml | mahlab |
Instructions
- Warm the milk in a saucepan and leave the butter to melt in it. Stir the sugar in and dilute it. Be careful not to overheat; keep the mixture tepid.
- Mix one tablespoon of warm milk with one teaspoon of sugar and the fresh yeast. Stir until combined. Allow about 10 minutes for the yeast to activate; it will froth on the surface.
- Place the flour in a bowl and form a mound. Add the milk and butter mixture and the diluted yeast. Combine all the ingredients together.
- Transfer the dough onto a work surface and fold and stretch it with your hands to get lots of air in. As it starts to come together it will come clearly off the work surface (about 10 minutes; or knead in a machine for the same time).
- Form the dough into a ball, place it in a bowl and cover with a tea towel. Leave to rest for an hour or two in a draft-free place. The dough is ready when it has doubled in size.
- Divide the dough into 20 equal pieces. Roll each into a sausage-like shape and bring both ends together, pinching to form a ring.
- Place each galette on an oven tray lined with baking paper. Leave the rings to prove for about 30 minutes; they should again puff and double in size.
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C and place the tray on the middle shelf. Bake about 15 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and the dough firm and spring-like to the touch.
- Turn out onto a wire rack and leave to cool.